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OT: A Chocolate Day

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chocdoc
chocdoc Posts: 461
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
Not due at work until 4 today - needed to get caught up on a little chocolate making. The folks at work like to buy Santas and such for stocking stuffers and I sold out the first batch yesterday.

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DSCN2269 by ChocDoc1, on Flickr

The view outside my chocolate lab window this morning - not looking forward to the drive later.

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DSCN2273 by ChocDoc1, on Flickr

The view inside my chocolate lab this morning - another batch completed - just the packing left.

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DSCN2276 by ChocDoc1, on Flickr

One of my favorites - Santa on a Vespa.

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DSCN2277 by ChocDoc1, on Flickr

New idea lifted from a posh food store in Toronto - layers of gianduja (chocolate and hazelnut paste). They were selling it for $66/lb. Mine will be a little less!
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Comments

  • Dimple's Mom
    Dimple's Mom Posts: 1,740
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    Wow, very impressive! How long have you been doing that?
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  • chocdoc
    chocdoc Posts: 461
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    Just under 20 years now.
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  • Little Chef
    Little Chef Posts: 4,725
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    Chocdoc: Nice work!! Could you tell me more about the gianduja please? Looked it up on google, but got many what appear to be 'shorcuts'. I enjoy candy making and such, but the gianduja is a new ingredient to me! Thanks!
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  • chocdoc
    chocdoc Posts: 461
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    Gianduja is essentially a mixture of very smooth hazelnut paste and chocolate. Usually milk chocolate - but it can be dark. Until I saw it at Pusateri's I'd never seen it made with white chocolate.

    It would be the filling in the chocolates called Guylian you get at Christmas time. Also part of the filling in a Ferrero Rocher.

    Depending on what tools you have in your kitchen you can make a fairly respectable hazelnut paste. I use a Sumeet spice grinder or my thermomix to reduce roasted hazelnuts to something resembling peanut butter. A Champion juicer would do a good job, as would a stone grinder of some sort.

    For the milk chocolate version I mix about 350 grams of milk chocolate with 150 grams of hazelnut paste. You need to temper the gianduja if you are going to mold it - it tempers at about 2º C cooler than white chocolate.
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  • Little Chef
    Little Chef Posts: 4,725
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    chocdoc: Thanks so much! I see a new experiment in my future. :laugh: I have a Champion juicer, so will try that. It will set just as firm as chocolate once tempered? Or does it maintain a softer texture due to the paste? Thanks again.
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  • chocdoc
    chocdoc Posts: 461
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    It's softer for sure - but can still be molded. I've had stuff made with dark chocolate that was tough enough to break the wires on a guitar cutter though.

    It's the eutectic effect of the nut oil on the cocoa butter that changes the melting point and gives it that wonderful melt in your mouth texture.
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  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
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    your santas are MUCH more interesting than what we usually see. nice stuff
    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
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  • Beli
    Beli Posts: 10,751
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    Kerry, If I was your neighbour I'd weight at least twice .....between the chocolates & the snow........What a great way to work...looks delicious
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  • Little Chef
    Little Chef Posts: 4,725
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    chocdoc: Again, thanks so much! I will be experimenting with this soon! :)
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  • cookn biker
    cookn biker Posts: 13,407
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    Kerry, Sweet work! ;)
    Which cookie won the contest?
    Drive careful.
    Molly
    Colorado Springs
    "Loney Queen"
    "Respect your fellow human being, treat them fairly, disagree with them honestly, enjoy their friendship, explore your thoughts about one another candidly, work together for a common goal and help one another achieve it."
    Bill Bradley; American hall of fame basketball player, Rhodes scholar, former U.S. Senator from New Jersey
    LBGE, MBGE, SBGE , MiniBGE and a Mini Mini BGE
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  • Susan Egglaine
    Susan Egglaine Posts: 2,437
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    impressive! thank for sharing ;):)
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  • chocdoc
    chocdoc Posts: 461
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    cookn biker wrote:
    Kerry, Sweet work! ;)
    Which cookie won the contest?
    Drive careful.

    Not yet announced - the final testing seems to be taking longer than my 22 batches!
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  • Hoss
    Hoss Posts: 14,600
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    WOW!!! There really is a Santa!!!Amazing work CD!!!
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  • Egg Juju
    Egg Juju Posts: 658
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    Nice work... and tasty too! :) Very cool.
    Large and Small BGE * www.quelfood.com
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